Despite the Dangers, This Founder Is Staying in War-Torn Syria to Help Entrepreneurs

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Entrepreneurship is challenging in any context. But for Sami Ismail, it’s challenging in a way few others can understand: His company, Intellect Events, which puts on cultural, business and networking events for entrepreneurs, is based in Damascus, Syria. “We’re living in a war zone,” Ismail says. 

Ismail, 27, is a scene, having launched his first company, Findbook, in 2010. He conceived of it as a sort of Amazon for Syria, but when a promotional book fair for the brand brought in more money and buzz than the actual brand did, Ismail realized the entrepreneur community was hungrier for intellectual events and safe spaces to gather and network. So he closed Findbook and launched with a partner in 2011.